To a thousand generations

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Kidsitting for 2 weeks

We enjoyed having Daniel, Bethany and David in May while Ralph & Sharon and sisters were in Mexico with the Mission Team. It was a fun challenge to homeschool them too! Very busy!! but good and gives me new energy :). The little 3yr-old, David, is such a little charmer and so "bjidehand"; Bethany was so eager to learn to read before her 6th b-day and worked so hard at it with me. Daniel & I spent quality 1-on-1 time over a cup of coffee – I mean, over a furry puppy – plucking /grooming her for the warmer weather ahead leaving a leaving wavy long hair at the just right places to make her look quite fashionable with a little ruffled skirt and puffed sleeves (to Josh’s chagrin! – which he stealthily removes while at the cottage!) Daniel (8) he was a big help with gardening too!

Feeding dandelions to Tia !

Proud bakers!

Mother's Day visitors

Bethany & David had so much fun playing house which they had set up in the living room

so much fun with Tia

uncontrollable giggles while chasing Tia around the house

Thurs dropped Daniel etc off at Tinie's (David came back on Sunday)

Marike was a little unsure of this wild looking busy creature!

Mommy was so happy to hold her little ones again!

Sad to say goodbye to my sweeties!

Thursday, April 04, 2013

Family Easter Celebration

A wonderful day with the our clan and Mom's sister's clan celebrating, feasting, sharing

Theresa sent this fruit art with hubby & boys as she wasn't able to come herself after all :(

Mark was in Ottawa at school, I missed too. So nice to see everyone else!

Enjoying the delicious hot lunch

Opa using every opportunity to play chess. Rachel looks pretty happy - is she winning?

Esther and Maria

Little Cuties Ben (above), Marike (below)

Games!!

5 Musketeers: Andrew, Noah, Kenny, Caleb, Timmy (hiding)

3 Musketeers: Joanna, Bethany, Willie

2 Lovebirds: Heidi & Tim

Best friends/twins: Anna (Emma) & Sarah ( ? )

We praise God for His saving, redeeming love in Christ!

"Oh to see the dawn of the Darkest Day

...Christ became sin for us.

Took the blame, bore the wrath.

We stand forgiven at the cross."

and then

"See What a morning gloriously bright...

For He lives: Christ is risen from the dead!

One with the Father, Ancient of Days...

Honour and blessing, glory and praise

To the King crowned with power and authority!

And we are raised with Him,

Death is dead, love has won, Christ has conquered....

Allelujah!

Beautiful photos and tulips are from Sharon. Thanks!

Thanks Mom for planning/overseeing and everyone helping/contributing and coming!

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Easter Thoughts and Wishes

Good Friday

Isaiah 53 – He was beaten, abused, bruised, crushed, despised, betrayed, rejected, punished, forsaken …

by men, but worst of all by His Father! Even though He was completely innocent!

Why?

For those of us who see our rebellion, our indifference to our Creator, our lack of love to our neighbours, our inability to honour God as we ought as His creatures.

And who see that we deserve punishment,

And who see our need for a Go-between, a Mediator, a Saviour

– because we can’t bear the just penalty of our sin and we can’t live the required life of perfection.

Only Christ, the God-Man could and did – if we will simply believe and cry for mercy and accept His gift of New Life.

Colossians 2:13 “And you, who were dead in your trespasses (failures)…God made alive together with Christ having forgiven all our trespasses by cancelling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands...by nailing them to the cross.”

Contemplating Christ’s sufferings on earth also helps take the edge off our sufferings. If Christ went thru such agony of physical pain and emotional & mental anguish for us, can’t we, thru His grace endure our lighter afflictions for Him?

“Stille Zaterdag”

Thinking of the sadness and emptiness Jesus’ followers must have felt after witnessing His death and burial – all their hopes and expectations killed and buried with Him!

Yet how much worse the feeling of lost-ness and purposelessness – the “what now?!” that those who say that God is dead must feel when they are really honest with themselves. Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (who greatly influenced the “three devils of the twentieth century: Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini) was honest enough to follow atheism to its logical outworking: madness, despair and suicide, bloodshed. “He wanted to look life squarely in the eye, with no God to obstruct his vision and the picture he saw was agonizing to his mind… the storm clouds were even more devastating and violent than any of God’s undertakers had imagined…” His parable called The Madman portrays the terrifying results of denying God and became somewhat prophetic as he himself went insane in the last decade of his life. (See: The Real Face of Atheism, Ravi Zacharias)

But, thanks be to God, all is NOT hopeless, God is NOT dead! Good Friday and the death of the God the Son was not the end of the story!

Yes, God did send His Son to take our place, pay the penalty of death – and He also raised Him again in a glorified body! and He credits our account with His righteousness (right life) and His Eternal Life! (John 3:16)

Easter gives us every reason to rejoice, find purpose to life and hope for the life here-after!

May each one of you reading this, know the Risen Saviour!

Happy Easter! Goede Pasen!

(Sorry the blog's been so dead, trying to resurrect it :) Hopefully some photos will be posted again soon!)

Tuesday, January 08, 2013

Top Ten 2012

Some of the resources that influenced Marguerite for good in 2012 – in chronological order, except for the first two which continued throughout the year:

1. Lamentations to Malachi – completed a 3 year stint of praying thru the Old Testament (ESV) – took me longer than expected but what a blessing!

2. Ravi Zacharias – Just Thinking/Let My People Think radio programs – www.rzim.org/let-my-people-think-broadcasts especially one called Releasing the Next Generation – a “must listen to” if you have teens or interact with them. Sermons from Corey Dykstra - 1 Samuel series, 2 on baptism, and sermons by Rev. Todd Joling (on Sermon Audio)

3. When God Weeps, Joni Eareckson Tada, Steven Estes – full of real life examples from her own suffering & her ministry with the disabled and Scripture, the book gives purpose, sense, and dignity to the saints in their “needless” suffering, pain, sorrow in this sin-tainted, cursed world. Difficult to digest and gut-wrenching in places, especially the hell chapter yet encouraging & triumphant, glorifying to God - persevering thru yields its rewards!

4. Kid/teen books: A Father of Orphan’s, Struck by Lightning, Amy & Her Brothers, Shipwrecked…

5. Jesus: Dead or Alive? Josh & Sean McDowell – great for giving to young skeptics at Easter…

6. The Robber’s Cave, A.L.O.E. (Lamplighter Rare Collector series) riveting story perfect for young men entering in the world workplace or secular dens of study

7. 12 Essential Minerals for Cellular Health, David Card – a modern, layman’s introduction to the inorganic biochemical elements in the blood & tissues required for cell function & integrity, with their therapeutic uses. A valuable aid for caring for your family’s health.

8. The Shoes that Love Made, Lucille Travis – biography of missionary doctor/surgeon to lepers in India Dr. Paul Brand – author of Fearfully & Wonderfully Made and In His Image (recommended) - and numerous medical rehab journal articles, Hand surgery Rehab book – which I studied in my Rehabilitation Medicine program at UofT. My Internship supervisor in Plastic Surgery Rehab actually met & trained under him in India! Wow!

9. Sudden Family, Debi & Steve Standiford – an amazing, true story of young American lawyers’ difficult and rewarding experiences in adopting Vietnamese teen boys

10. The Incredible Chinese Script, S.H.Tow. “Rest assured, The Incredible Chinese Script is in not just another book to add to your weariness. In its pages are astonishing discoveries of Scripture truths in the ancient Chines Script which affirm the unassailable rock of Holy Writ and the Genesis record.” Especially good to give to Chinese friends and anyone caught up in Darwinism.

Monday, December 24, 2012

Merry Christmas to you and yours

from our whole clan!

May you all experience the true joy and peace

that comes only from our Lord and Saviour

whose birth we celebrate at Christmas in a special way.

May we keep Christ central in all we do.

God's blessings to you all!

The night of Betty's kid's Christmas program (Fri Dec 7), I got to babysit David & Bethany - which was quite uneventful & relaxing (phew). After story time on the couch and supper we still had time for Bethany to finish this pretty plastic wreath that a couple of the other kids had started previously.

This is the next morning (Sat Dec 8) and after showing off her wreath to Oma, she ran up stairs and put on a fancy dress & black stockings and we rushed off to her first piano recital!

Here she is with Heidi at the church where Heidi organized a recital for all her piano students! Very nice! So neat to be able to go and hear the children play and see Heidi encouraging, coaching or accompanying them.

Kenny

Maria, Andrew & Daniel played also. Great job everyone!

Christmas flower basket arranging with Oma

Thurs Dec 20, John dropped off Esther & Sarah at Sharon's while in the area for business so they could stay for the weekend - so nice! Great that Heidi, with her busy schedule, was also able to make it for the morning - nice to have some time with the teens before the little girls came (oops, Esther's not so little anymore!) Here we are hanging out in my livingroom after lunch.

After supper, just as the snow began to fall in huge fluffy flakes, the girls went out, candle & flashlight in hand, to fill the air with their sweet melodious "Glor-o-ria, in Excelis Deo, Glor-o-o-ria, in Excelsis De-eo".... One delighted neighbour asked if we had ordered the snow just for this (it hadn't really snowed yet this winter!)